ee him, an' maybe no see him
after a'."

"An' what for micht he no be comin hame?" said Willie. "It's time he
war, I think, if he wishes to find the auld folk to the fore."

"Well, but, faither, suppose he war to tell ye that he had seen oor Tam
twa or three days syne, an' that ye micht expeck to see him hame sune?"

"Mercy, lass! what's the matter wi' ye, wi' yer maybes an' yer supposes?
What gars ye gang swaggerin up an' doon that gait, lookin as ye were
demented? There's something pleasin ye by common. If 'twar Tam himsel,
ye couldna be mair uplifted."

"An' guid richt hae I to be uplifted, mither, if ye kent a'."

"Eh, it's Tam himsel!" almost screamed the old woman; "where is he? Let
me see my bairn."

"Here's all that's left of him, mother," said a fine, stout-looking
sailor; who, unable any longer to restrain his impatience, stumped in on
a wooden leg just as Janet was speaking.

"My bairn! my bairn!" sobbed the old woman, throwing her arms round him;
"mony a lang day hae I prayed to see ye ance mair; an' noo that I hae
ye, oh, do I see ye a puir cripple!"

"Oh, that's nothing, mother; nothing but the fortune of war. If I'd lost
my head instead of my leg, mother, I wouldn't have been here to tell my
own story."

"That's Gude's truth; an' great reason hae we to be thankfu it's nae
waur. But, oh! it's a sair dispensation."

"Ah, old boy! how are you?" said Tom, shaking his father heartily by the
hand; "all alive and hearty--eh?"

"Weel aneugh, weel aneugh, Tam; just choppin on; but richt glad am I to
see ye again, my son. But, Tam, that wasna the gate ye wad hae spoken to
yer auld faither afore ye gaed frae hame."

"My manner of speaking may be changed, father," replied the young man,
respectfully; "but there's no change in my heart--that's true-blue
still; and it'll be long before I can clear off my reckoning with you
for all your kindness to me. No, no, father, my _heart's_ in the right
place still."

"Weel, my man, I hope sae. Sit doon an' tell us a' that's happened ye
sin' we last heard frae ye. But wait a wee. Janet, seek oot the best
that's in the hoose for the puir fallow; an', whan he's had a guid
supper, he'll be in better fettle for giein us his cracks."

"Tak aff yer jacket, my bonny man," said his mother; "an' hing it up
afore the fire, an' draw in till't yersel. Willie, I'm thinkin there's
something in the bottle. I'll put on the kettle, an' we'll gie the lad
something he'll be nane t